Stupid things that patients do (1)
An elderly gentleman purchased some ranitidine for heartburn today (training point number one for staff there - heartburn in the elderly needs medical investigation as it could be cancer or an ulcer). When asked if he was on any other medication he said he wasn't (training point number two: its not 'are you on any other medication', it's 'what other medication are you on'. The difference between closed and open questions is amazing).
Ten minutes later the gentleman came back, saying he felt guilty for lying to the staff. So I gave him a refund (shouldn't do, strictly speaking according to company policy) and sent him to his GP. When I looked at his medication history he was on warfarin, amongst other things. Now that's just the sort of thing you want to be on if you have got a bleeding gastric ulcer.
Patients are just so helpful sometimes.
Ten minutes later the gentleman came back, saying he felt guilty for lying to the staff. So I gave him a refund (shouldn't do, strictly speaking according to company policy) and sent him to his GP. When I looked at his medication history he was on warfarin, amongst other things. Now that's just the sort of thing you want to be on if you have got a bleeding gastric ulcer.
Patients are just so helpful sometimes.
posted by UK Community Pharmacist at 1/29/2007 10:23:00 pm
2 Comments:
Thanks for the training points - keep 'em coming. I already knew #1 but would have asked the closed question. Will switch to open questioning from now on.
Hope you threw away the returned ranitidine. Who knows what the patient did to it after he left the shop!
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